Looking back at my posting frequency I see it loosely follows a seasonal pattern. I should aim for a little more often but for now, with the end of summer in mind, here’s what I did last summer …and late spring.

I read, alot. Not all of it fiction but I did read several short story collections and several novels.

I wrote. I managed to push two short stories closer to the door and have several others in various states of drafting. I delved deep into a novel and I am getting through the first ‘inspirational’ draft.

I learned. Much of the recent reading and writing have been lessons in creating characters, plots, and just getting words on the page. I learned I can work on multiple projects simultaneously but only on one of each form, so one novel and one short story. The quality of the writing has improved but just as importantly so as the productivity.

I traveled. Between work trips and vacations I’ve been to Austin, Dallas, Denver, and Boston. On the radar are Connecticut, Maryland, and South Korea.

I weathered some serious family crises.

I also ate too much, exercised too little and fell short on sleep.

As the saying goes, “Life happens.” Sometimes it happens to you, at others you make it happen using the things you have some control over.

The words which reach the page are the only things I fully control. Managing the time to get them there is only partially in my control; recognizing and utilizing that control is a skill to be honed.